Mumbai, September 12
Thirteen years after serial blasts killed 257 persons in Mumbai, a Tada court today finally pronounced its first verdict convicting three brothers and sister-in-law of prime accused Ibrahim Mushtaq, alias ‘Tiger’ Memon, who himself is absconding.
Judge Pramod Kode pronounced Tiger’s brothers Yakub, Essa and Yusuf and sister-in-law Rubina guilty of conspiracy in the blasts case. Three other relatives, Rubina’s husband and Tiger’s brother Suleiman, Rahin (Yakub’s wife) and Hanifa (Tiger’s mother) were given the benefit of doubt and set free.
Acquitting them the court said although there was no clear case for their acquittal, there was not enough evidence to convict them and hence they were set free giving them the benefit of doubt.
The court will hear arguments on the quantum of sentence tomorrow. The convicts could face imprisonment from five years to life and even death penalty, according to legal experts.
Tiger’s
father, Abdul Razzak Memon, also an accused in the case passed away during the course of the trail.
The four convicted members of the Memon family have been found guilty of being part of the conspiracy for carrying out the serial blasts.
While the court ordered all four to be taken into custody immediately, Yakub Memon shouted at the judge in anger. Hurling expletives at the judge, Memon said Rubina should be given a week’s time to surrender so that she could arrange for the care of her children. Yakub later apologized to the court.
The court will pronounce the verdict regarding the rest of the accused in stages.
The verdict against actor Sanjay Dutt, one of the accused in the blasts case, will be given in the next few weeks.
Ninetyfour accused on bail, including Sanjay Dutt, were exempted from appearance while Rubina Memon, who was found guilty, was given time to surrender until further orders on compassionate ground as court accepted her plea that she had small children to look after.
The court said that it would summon the accused on bail as and when it was necessary for the purpose of delivering verdict.
The day began with lawyers, policemen and mediapersons crowding into the makeshift court in the Arthur Road Central Jail.
The accused persons, including Sanjay Dutt, were brought to the court. Dutt came in accompanied by sister Priya and local MLA Baba Siddiqui.
Soon after the judge announced the verdict an angry Yakub Memon, a Chartered Accountant by profession, shouted expletives and said his family did not want any lawyer to argue on their behalf for the quantum of sentence.
“We have seen that for the last thirteen years innocent people have been labelled terrorists. We do not need anyone to protect us,” an enraged Yakub said.
Later he moved to the dock where the other accused were sitting and his brothers were seen consoling him.
The blasts happened on March 12, 1993 when 13 IEDs fitted into cars and scooters went off across the city. According to the chargesheet in the case, the conspiracy was hatched by underworld don Dawood Ibrahim and Tiger Memon to avenge the demolition of the Babri Masjid on December 6, 1992 and the riots that followed.
In all 257 lives were lost and scores seriously injured.
According to the prosecution, the accused brought in vehicles into their garages to be fitted with RDX. Yakub, a chartered accountant, has been found guilty of arranging funds for the operation.
The entire Memon family had fled to Pakistan on fake passports shortly before the blasts. The prosecution contended that the act was an indication of their prior knowledge of the conspiracy.
Dawood, Memon and Dossa are absconding accused in the list of 29. While Dawood was already abroad when the blasts occurred, Memon and Dossa fled a day before.
Tiger Memon and his brother Yakub also arranged payment to two other members of the Menon family in NRI account in Hongkong Bank, Bandra branch, putting in the names of Ayub Memon, Rubina and Shabana Memon and Reshma Memon.
The Memons had fled to Dubai between March 12 and 13, which indicated that they had previous knowledge of the conspiracy.
— PTI
